Sky and Mystics Meet in Regular-Season Finale at Capital One Arena

The Chicago Sky (16-27) and Washington Mystics (27-16) close the 2026 regular season tonight at Capital One Arena. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET (6:30 p.m. CT), with the game airing on The U in Chicago and Monumental Sports Network in Washington, and on The Team 980 radio.

Washington enters on a three-game winning streak and with its place in franchise history secure. The Mystics’ 27 wins are the most in team history, surpassing the 26 won by the 2019 championship team, and their 1,615 rebounds are a new WNBA single-season record. Washington leads the league at 37.6 rebounds per game and is 8-2 over its last 10 games. The Mystics have been vulnerable with the ball, however, ranking last in the WNBA in both turnovers (15.5 per game) and steals (5.58 per game).

Seeding remains on the line for Washington. The Mystics can finish no lower than sixth, but they need a win over Chicago and an Indiana loss at Minnesota tonight to claim the No. 5 seed. A Mystics victory paired with a Fever loss would leave both teams at 28-16, and Washington holds the tiebreaker after winning the season series with Indiana 2-1. An Indiana win or a Washington loss would send the Mystics into the playoffs as the No. 6 seed, giving Chicago a chance to shape the postseason bracket in its final game.

Chicago arrives after snapping a five-game losing streak with a 97-85 win over Toronto on Tuesday. The Sky have been one of the league’s best passing teams, ranking fifth in the WNBA and first in the Eastern Conference at 21.5 assists per game, and second in the league in blocks at 4.7 per game. Chicago set a WNBA record with 38 assists in a 124-94 win over Portland on June 26, a game in which the Sky also shot a franchise-best 66.2% from the field. Under second-year head coach Tyler Marsh, Chicago has improved in points, assists, steals, blocks, offensive rating, defensive rating and field goal percentage despite never having fewer than 30 points per game of production sidelined by injury.

Shakira Austin leads Washington at 17.2 points and 9.5 rebounds per game. She posted 25 points, 13 rebounds and four steals against Connecticut on Tuesday for her 20th double-double of the season, and her 722 points are the first 700-point season in franchise history. Kiki Iriafen adds 15.3 points and 9.5 rebounds with 22 double-doubles, making her and Austin the first teammates in league history to each record 20 or more in the same season. Sonia Citron averages 16.7 points and 4.4 assists, and rookie Lauren Betts leads all first-year players with 37 blocks.

Kamilla Cardoso anchors the Sky with career highs of 14.6 points and 8.6 rebounds per game on 55.2% shooting, and her 15 double-doubles are a single-season career best. She needs 29 points to reach 1,500 for her career. Sydney Taylor, the undrafted rookie averaging 13.6 points, is 12 points shy of 500 career points and ranks seventh on the WNBA’s all-time rookie three-point list with 71. Gabriela Jaquez, who goes by Gabriela or “Gabs,” is averaging 10.4 points over her last five games, and Courtney Vandersloot ranks second in WNBA history with 3,026 career assists. Jaquez and Taylor each scored 18 points against Toronto, while Elizabeth Williams grabbed a season-high 11 rebounds.

Chicago will again be without Skylar Diggins, DiJonai Carrington, Natasha Cloud, Azurá Stevens and Aicha Coulibaly, all listed out. The Sky’s most recent starting lineup featured Vandersloot, Taylor, Jaquez, Williams and Cardoso. Morgan Maly, who averaged 4.5 points and shot 50% from three on her developmental deal, has been converted to an extreme hardship rest-of-season contract. Washington has used Onyenwere, Iriafen, Austin, Citron and Georgia Amoore as its primary starting group, going 20-12 with that lineup.

Washington won both previous meetings this season, 90-72 in Washington on June 2 and 110-80 in Chicago on Sept. 17. Austin led the Mystics with 20 points in the September game, while Vandersloot paced the Sky with 14. In the June matchup, Taylor led Chicago with 15 points and Cardoso posted 13 rebounds and a career-high six blocks. The Mystics lead the all-time series 42-35.

Rebounding and ball security frame the matchup. The Sky are 8-22 when outrebounded, while the Mystics are 23-12 when they win the rebounding margin. On the other side, Chicago is 11-9 when it commits fewer turnovers than its opponent and 5-18 when it does not, making Washington’s league-high turnover rate a potential opening for the Sky.

The game carries several familiar faces. Jaquez faces former UCLA teammates Betts and Angela Dugalić, all three coming off a national championship and first-round selections in the 2026 WNBA Draft. Michaela Onyenwere played for the Sky in 2024 and 2025, and Chicago’s Jacy Sheldon, acquired from Washington in April, played two seasons at Ohio State with Mystics rookie Cotie McMahon. Mystics head coach Sydney Johnson was a Sky assistant in 2024, and assistant Emre Vatansever served on Chicago’s staff from 2018 to 2023, including a stint as interim head coach.